Method and apparatus for bottle recirculation

ABSTRACT

A machine arrangement that operates on a plurality of articles, such as bottles, includes a plurality of machines arranged in a machine arrangement. At least one of the machines includes an apparatus configured to modify the articles by at least one of moving, holding, manipulating and shaping the articles as they pass from an article infeed to an article discharge of the machine arrangement. A recirculation mechanism moves articles from a downstream machine after a first pass (or run) and recirculate the articles back to an upstream machine in a second (recirculation) pass (or run) so that the articles, which are recirculated through the second pass are again subjected to a different machine modifying operation in at least one machine that the articles have previously passed in the first pass. The articles move continuously through the first and second passes while being subjected to at least one machine modifying operation.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S.Provisional Application No. 60/787,502, filed Mar. 31, 2006, which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates generally to the field of machinearrangements for processing articles, such as bottles. Morespecifically, the invention relates to a machine arrangement that isconfigured to recirculate articles so that the articles may undergoadditional operations without the need for a long and space consumingmachine arrangement.

Conventional machine arrangements are strictly linear and are generallyreferred to as machine lines. That is, the machine lines, with each andevery processing and/or forming machine, extend in a single line suchthat articles operated on in the machine line only move through themachine arrangement in a single pass. Such a set up may take up a largeamount of space in a warehouse, factory, or other location.Occasionally, buildings are not sufficiently large or long to housecomplex and long machine arrangements. For example, in bottle or canoperations, many different types of processes need to be performed onthe bottle or can, such as necking, curling, expansion, trimming, etc.Each type of process may also require a plurality of machines in orderto sufficiently perform the necessary process. For instance, neckingoperations may require multiple operations with multiple machines inorder to properly neck a bottle or can that is of a certain length orsize.

Furthermore, the conventional straight and single pass machine lines maybe more costly. The conventional machine lines may need to includeduplicate or additional machines in order to perform the desiredfunction(s).

SUMMARY

In an embodiment of the invention, a machine arrangement which operateson a plurality of articles is provided. The machine arrangementcomprises: a plurality of machines arranged to cooperate with each otherin a manner to form a machine arrangement, the plurality of machinesincluding an upstream machine and a downstream machine in the machinearrangement, at least one of the machines comprises an apparatusconfigured to modify the articles in at least one modifying operation asthey pass from an article infeed to an article discharge of the machinearrangement; and a recirculation mechanism which moves articles from thedownstream machine after a first pass through the machine arrangementand recirculate the articles back to the upstream machine in arecirculation pass so that the articles which are recirculated throughthe recirculation pass are again subjected to a different modifyingoperation in a machine that the articles have previously passed throughin the first pass. The recirculation mechanism comprises an articleguide track which transfers the articles from the downstream to theupstream one of the machine, the article guide track comprising a trackwidth adjusting arrangement that adjusts the track width of the articleguide track to accommodate varying article sizes.

Another embodiment of the invention provides an article processingarrangement. The arrangement comprises a plurality of article processingmachines. The machines each comprise an upstream machine and a downstream machine in the article processing arrangement. The arrangementcomprises: an operation star wheel for holding articles, each star wheelincluding a number of pockets for receiving and holding the articlesduring processing operations, the pockets being divided into first andsecond pockets and arranged so that each first pocket is arrangedbetween two second pockets; a transfer star wheel associated with theoperation star wheel, the transfer star wheel having a plurality ofpockets equal in number to the total of the first and second pocketsformed in the operation star wheel, the pockets being arranged in amanner so that articles in the first and second pockets of the operationstar wheel are respectively transferred into first and second pockets ofthe transfer star wheel; an infeed supply for supplying articles onlyinto the first pockets of the operation star wheel; a recirculationsupply for recirculating articles which have been introduced into thefirst pockets and transferred to the transfer star wheel back to theoperation star wheel, the recirculation supply configured to introducethe articles into the second pockets on the operation star wheel; adischarge for discharging articles from the second pockets of thetransfer star wheel; and an article guide track which transfers thearticles from the downstream to the upstream one of the machines totransfer the articles to the recirculation supply. The article guidetrack comprising a track width adjusting arrangement that adjusts thetrack width of the article guide track to accommodate varying articlesizes.

According to yet another embodiment, a machine arrangement whichoperates on a plurality of articles is provided. The machine arrangementcomprises: a plurality of machines arranged to cooperate with each otherin a manner to form a machine arrangement, the plurality of machinesincluding an upstream machine and a downstream machine, at least one ofthe machines comprising a means for modifying the articles by at leastone of moving, holding, manipulating, and shaping the articles as theypass from an article infeed to an article discharge of the machinearrangement and move along a path having a predetermined configuration;a means for recirculating articles within the machine arrangement, themeans for recirculating articles moves articles from the downstreammachine after a first pass and recirculate the articles back to theupstream machine in a recirculation path so that the articles which arerecirculated through the recirculation pass are subjected to a variationof the at least one machine with means for modifying the articles thatthe articles have previously passed through in the first pass; means forapplying lubrication to the articles entering the machine arrangement atthe article infeed; and means for applying lubrication to the articlesin the recirculation pass.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a method ofrecirculating articles is provided. The method comprises method ofrecirculating articles in a machine arrangement comprises: feeding aplurality of articles to a processing turret into alternating pocketsvia a primary infeed in a machine arrangement; performing a process onthe articles; moving the articles to a second turret or transfer starwheel in the machine arrangement and keeping the articles incorresponding alternating pockets; transferring the articles to arecirculation conveyor; conveying the articles to a recirculation chute;feeding the articles via a secondary infeed to the machine arrangementto alternating pockets opposite from the primary infeed pockets;performing a different process on the articles in the opposite pockets;dividing articles in opposite pockets to send to a discharge anddividing the articles in primary infeed pockets to send to therecirculation conveyor; applying a lubricant to the articles in theprimary infeed pockets; and applying a lubricant to the articles in theopposite pockets.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only,and are not restrictive of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent from the following description, appendedclaims, and the accompanying exemplary embodiments shown in thedrawings, which are briefly described below.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a machine arrangement with a recirculationconveyor system according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a detailed schematic view of the machine arrangement of FIG.1.

FIG. 3 is a front schematic view of the machine arrangement of FIG. 1showing support structure.

FIG. 4 is a front schematic view of the machine arrangement of FIG. 1showing additional support structure.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the recirculation conveyor system according toan embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the recirculation conveyor systemin which turn wheels and guide track are illustrated.

FIG. 7 is a front perspective view of the recirculation conveyor systemin which the turn wheels and the guide track are illustrated.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the recirculation conveyor system in which arecirculation infeed is illustrated.

FIG. 9 is a detail side view of the recirculation infeed of FIG. 8illustrating a conveyor belt and position of an article on the belt.

FIG. 10 is a detail side perspective view of the conveyor belt in whichvacuum openings are shown.

FIG. 11 is a rear perspective view of an article guide track of therecirculation conveyor system at a recirculation discharge.

FIG. 12 illustrates a front elevation view of an article infeed andrecirculation discharge according to an embodiment of the recirculationconveyor system in which a waxer assembly is shown.

FIG. 13 is a side perspective view of a waxer assembly according to anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 14 is a detail side view of rack and pinion arrangement on acantilever beam support of a track width adjustment mechanism of therecirculation conveyor system according to an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 15 is a detail side perspective view of the rack and pinionarrangement of the track width adjustment mechanism of FIG. 14.

FIG. 16 is a detail perspective view of a track width adjustmentmechanism according to another embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a detail perspective view of the track width adjustmentmechanism of FIG. 16.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An embodiment of the invention relates to a machine arrangement whichoperates on a plurality of articles. The machine arrangement comprises aplurality of machines arranged to cooperate with each other in a mannerto form a machine arrangement, at least one of the machines comprisingan apparatus configured to modify articles by operating at least one ofmoving, holding, manipulating, and shaping the articles as they passfrom an article infeed to an article discharge of the machinearrangement and move along a path having a predetermined configuration.A recirculation mechanism moves articles from a downstream machine aftera first pass (or sometimes referred to as a “run” or “path”) andrecirculate the articles back to an upstream machine in a recirculation(second) pass so that the articles, which are recirculated through thesecond pass, are again subjected to the at least one machine modifyingoperation in a selected number of machines that the articles havepreviously passed through in the first pass. The articles movecontinuously through the first pass and second pass while beingsubjected to the at least one machine modifying operations.

In another embodiment, the recirculation mechanism comprises an articleguide track which transfers the articles from the downstream to theupstream one of the machines.

In another embodiment, the article guide track comprises a track widthadjusting arrangement that uniformly (or, in other words, at the sametime) adjusts the width of the article guide track to accommodatevarying sizes and/or shapes of articles.

The track width adjusting arrangement, in another embodiment, comprisesa rack and pinion arrangement which, upon the turning of a line shaftvia a crank wheel, the pinions simultaneously rotate to move thecorresponding racks forwards and/or backwards to vary the width of thearticle guide track. In an embodiment, the pinions are operativelyconnected to the line shaft and the racks are operatively connected tocantilevered beams of the article guide track.

The track width adjusting arrangement, in another embodiment, comprisesa chain and sprocket arrangement which simultaneously rotates threadedmembers in a manner which varies the width of the article guide track.

In another embodiment, the article guide track includes a vacuum grip tocarry the articles through the recirculation path. The vacuum grip isconfigured to release the articles at a recirculation discharge (supplychute).

According to another embodiment of the invention, a machine arrangementwhich operates on a plurality of articles, comprises a plurality ofmachines arranged to cooperate with each other in a manner to form amachine arrangement. At least one of the machines comprises an apparatusconfigured to modify articles by operating at least one of moving,holding, manipulating, and shaping the articles as they pass from anarticle infeed to an article discharge of the machine arrangement andmove along a path having a predetermined configuration. A recirculationmechanism moves articles from a downstream machine after a first passand recirculate the articles back to an upstream machine in arecirculation path so that the articles which are recirculated throughthe second pass are again subjected to the at least one machinemodifying operations in a selected number of machines that the articleshave previously passed through in the first pass. The machinearrangement further includes a lubrication mechanism configured to applylubricant over an exterior portion of each article after each articlepasses through the article infeed and/or a recirculation infeed.

In another embodiment, the machine arrangement includes a lubricationmechanism that is operably connected to a first star wheel located at anend of a recirculation supply chute (sometimes referred to herein as a“recirculation discharge”).

In an embodiment, the first star wheel includes a plurality of pockets;at least one pocket includes a roller configured to rotate and applylubricant to the article in the corresponding pocket.

In another embodiment, an article processing arrangement is provided.The article processing arrangement comprises an article processingmachine including an operation star wheel for holding articles. Eachstar wheel includes a number of pockets for receiving and holding thearticles during processing operations. The pockets are divided intoalternating first and second pockets and arranged so that each firstpocket is arranged between two second pockets. The arrangement furtherincludes a transfer star wheel associated with the operation star wheel.The transfer star wheel includes a plurality of pockets equal in numberto the total of the first and second pockets formed in the operationstar wheel. The pockets are arranged in a manner so that articles in thefirst and second pockets of the operation star wheel are respectivelytransferred into first and second pockets of the transfer star wheel.The arrangement also includes an infeed supply for supplying articlesonly into the first pockets of the operation star wheel and arecirculation supply for recirculating articles which have beenintroduced into the first pockets and transferred to the transfer starwheel back to the operation star wheel. The recirculation supply isconfigured to introduce the articles into the second pockets on theoperation star wheel. The arrangement further includes an outfeed fordischarging articles from the second pockets of the transfer star wheel.The operation and transfer star wheels are continuously rotatable.

In an embodiment, the arrangement includes a vacuum grip to carry thearticles through the recirculation path. The vacuum grip is configuredto release the articles at a recirculation supply.

In an embodiment of the arrangement, a lubrication mechanism is operablyconnected to a first star wheel located at an end of a recirculationsupply chute (recirculation discharge).

In one embodiment, the first star wheel includes a plurality of pockets.At least one pocket includes a roller configured to rotate and applylubricant to the article in the corresponding pocket.

In an embodiment, the arrangement comprises a lubrication mechanismconfigured to lubricate an exterior portion of each article after eacharticles passes through the recirculation supply chute.

In another embodiment of the invention, a method of recirculatingarticles is provided. The method comprises feeding a plurality ofarticles to a processing turret into alternating primary infeed pocketsvia a primary infeed in a machine arrangement, performing a process onthe articles, moving the articles to a second turret or transfer starwheel in the machine arrangement and keeping the articles iscorresponding alternating pockets, and transferring the articles to arecirculation conveyor. The method further comprises conveying thearticles to a recirculation chute and feeding the articles via asecondary infeed to the machine arrangement to alternating pocketsopposite from the primary infeed pockets. The method also includesperforming a process on the articles in the opposite pockets, dividingarticles in the opposite pockets to send to a discharge and dividing thearticles in primary infeed pockets to send to the recirculationconveyor.

A machine or machine arrangement with multiple stations on turrets thatperform substantially similar processes in stages may be reduced in sizeor number of components by having alternating processes performed oneach station of the turret. Each turret includes at least one starwheel, whether an operation star wheel or a transfer star wheel. Inorder to return the partially processed product back to a processingturret (operation star wheel) or series of turrets, a method ofrecirculation is required.

The articles (or sometimes referred to herein as a “product”) are firstfed into a machine in a machine arrangement to fill alternating pockets(or sometimes referred to as a “station”) of a star wheel in a turret.The articles are then processed though any number of stages, which caninclude forming, transferring, or any other suitable type of processstage, which can be performed in any number of turrets or machines. Thearticles are then discharged to a conveyor, or other suitable dischargemechanism, to be delivered, via a recirculation infeed, to arecirculation supply chute (recirculation discharge) that places eacharticle in the pockets that were not filled by the first infeedoperation. The next set of process stages is then performed. When allprocess stages are complete for an article, that article is dischargedfrom the machine arrangement or directed to other processes in themachine arrangement that are positioned downstream of the recirculationinfeed.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the process may includethe following: (1) a transfer star wheel, with half the number ofpockets as an operation star wheel, feeds articles into a first set ofpockets onto a first operation star wheel (sometimes referred to as a“processing star wheel”); (2) a process is performed in alternatingpockets on the articles for a number of stages in operation star wheels;(3) the articles arrive at a “divider” star wheel that recirculate thearticles that have been through the first series of processes andtransfers a first set of articles into a recirculation infeed; (4) aconveyor transports the first set of articles that are to berecirculated to a recirculation supply chute; (5) the recirculationsupply chute transfers the articles into a second set of pockets whichare opposite from the first set of pockets; (6) the process iscontinued, such that the articles in the second set of pockets passthrough a number of stages on the alternate (second) set of pockets; and(7) the fully circulated articles arrive at the “divider” turret andpass through to be discharged or directed to other processes that aredownstream of the recirculation infeed.

According to another embodiment, the process may comprise: (1) an infeedstar wheel, with a vacuum mechanism to retain bottles for part of therotation, feeds bottles onto another star wheel (directly or through anintermediate star wheel as shown); (2) the unprocessed bottles arecombined (after some bottles have been partially processed andrecirculated) in alternating fashion with partially processed bottles.Vacuum is supplied through passages in the star wheels and timed asnecessary to retain or release bottles. The star wheel on which theunprocessed and partially processed bottles are combined may havedifferent timing on alternating pockets. (3) The bottles are thentransferred to a processing turret with alternating process tooling inevery other station. The bottles may continue for a number of processstages. (4) After the desired number of stages has been completed, thebottles are recirculated. Vacuum is supplied through passages in a“divider” star wheel and timed as necessary to retain or releasebottles. Alternating pockets of the “divider” star wheel have differenttiming. A second star wheel, located above the “divider” star wheel, hasvacuum supplied to every other pocket and sends the partially processedbottles onto the recirculating conveyor. (5) The recirculating conveyorretains the bottles with vacuum to lift the bottles up to a track workthat conveys the bottles to the second infeed. (6) A star wheel, similarto the first infeed star wheel, places the bottles in the stations notfilled by the first infeed, and the bottles are transported andprocessed in a similar manner as they were in the first set ofprocesses. (7) After the stages of processing are complete, the bottlesarrive at the “divider” star wheel, where they continue without beingrecirculated.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to thefigures.

FIGS. 1-17 illustrate a recirculation conveyor system with arecirculating machine arrangement 102. An article 50 may be a can, anysuitable food or beverage container, jar, bottle or any other suitablearticle. The article 50 has an open end, opposite closed end, and asidewall extending from the closed end. Alternatively, the article 50may be open at both ends. A top, lid, or other closure may be added tothe article 50 during an operation in the machine arrangement 102, or ata later stage.

For exemplary purposes only, the below description will describe therecirculation conveyor system and method for use on a container 50. Itwill be recognized that any other type of article 50 (such as thatdescribed above) may be used.

Containers 50 are fed into a continuously rotating forming turret (suchas turret 210 shown in FIG. 2) either from an infeed track 130 or from apreceding transfer star wheel 140 (sometimes referred to as a “transferturret”), which may be part of a machine arrangement 102. FIG. 1illustrates an infeed transfer star wheel 140 passing a container 50 tothe continuously rotating forming turret 210 (sometimes referred toherein as an “operation turret” or a “forming turret” or a “forming starwheel”) of a bottle forming process. The forming turret 210 may performany suitable type of forming operation or process on the containers 50.For example, the forming turret 210 may perform a necking, curling,trimming, threading, or any other type of operation.

While the forming turret 210 is rotating with the container 50 loadedinto a forming station (sometimes referred to as a “pocket”) therein,the container 50 will be inserted into a forming head (not shown) on theforming turret 210 where an open end of the container 50 will besubjected to a forming process and then withdrawn. The container 50 isthen transferred from the forming turret 210 onto another transfer starwheel 140 or a discharge track 146, in the direction illustrated by thearrows in FIG. 2. It will be noted that the direction may vary inalternative embodiments.

The transfer star wheels 140, whether preceding a forming turret 210and/or following a forming turret 210, have similar designs andfunctions. The preceding star wheel 140 loads the container 50 into theforming turret 210, and the following star wheel 140 unloads thecontainer 50 from the forming turret 210. The container 50 may then berecirculated back to the preceding transfer wheel 140.

According to another embodiment, the machine arrangement and machinesequence 102 can include a recirculation mechanism 103 configured tomove the containers 50 from a downstream one of the plurality of modules110 after a first run (or pass) in the machine arrangement 102 andrecirculate the bottles back to an upstream one of the plurality ofmodules 110 in a recirculation path (on a recirculation conveyor/articleguide track 104) so that the containers 50, which are recirculated, passthrough a second run (or pass) in the machine arrangement 102 to subjectthe containers 50 through the operations of the forming turret machines210 an additional time. When the containers 50 pass through the secondrun, the containers 50 do not pass through forming operations that areidentical to the first run. Rather, the containers 50 in the second passare in different pockets 131 for different operations. For example, thecontainers 50 in the second pass are positioned in dies with smallernecking diameters. Alternatively, the containers 50 in the second passcan undergo completely different operations than in the first pass. Forexample, in the first pass, the containers 50 could undergo neckingoperations, followed by threading operations in the second pass. In anembodiment, the different operations may be accomplished in the sameforming turret machines 210 or in different forming turret machines 210.Alternatively, the containers 50 may undergo a modifying operation inthe first pass and, in the second pass, the containers 50 may undergoonly a slight variation of the first modifying operation.

It will also be recognized that the machine arrangement 102 couldinclude any suitable number of passes (or runs), such as two, three,four, five, or any other suitable amount. With each additional pass, theforming turrets 210 and transfer star wheels 140 will contain theappropriate number of varying pockets 131. For example, if the machinearrangement 102 includes three passes, then each forming turret 210 andtransfer star wheel 140 will have three different pockets: a first setfor the first pass, a second set for the second pass, and a third setfor the third pass. The sets will alternate as appropriate in theforming turrets 210 and transfer star wheels 140. For example, thepockets 131 will alternate as set one, set two, set three, set one, settwo, set three, etc.

The recirculation mechanism 103 includes a recirculation discharge 111located on an upstream portion of the machine arrangement 102, arecirculation infeed 112 located on a downstream portion of the machinearrangement 102, and a guide track/conveyor 104. Alternatively, therecirculation discharge 111 and recirculation infeed 112 could belocated in any suitable location in the machine arrangement.

In one embodiment, the containers 50 are held in position on a firsttransfer star wheel 140′ (and other star wheels or turrets 140, 141,142, 143, 144, 145) using a pneumatic pressure differential or “suction”by a recirculation mechanism 103.

In an embodiment, the star wheels 140 may be composed of two segments,which are connected to a drive shaft by way of a timing plate. Eachtiming plate is individually adjustable with respect to the respectiveturret drive shaft in a manner which allows their angular rotationalposition with respect to the turret drive shaft to be adjusted and thenfixed to the degree that the two segments of the forming turret starwheel 210 which are mounted thereon, are positioned/timed with respectto the transfer star wheels on either side thereof, so that a smooth,continuous, incident-free transfer of bottles between the turret starwheels and the respective transfer star wheels, can take place.

As noted above, in one embodiment the transfer star wheels 140 arearranged to hold the containers 50 in position using suction. The starwheels 140 may have a vacuum port (not shown), formed in a channelportion, fluidly communicating with a source of vacuum (negativepneumatic pressure) via a suitable manifold. The vacuum is delivered tothe vacuum ports and the surface area of the containers 50, which areexposed to the suction, is increased to a degree that the containers 50are stably held in position as each container 50 passes below thetransfer star wheel axis of rotation.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the machine arrangement 102 comprisesan infeed track 130 to feed the containers 50 into the machinearrangement 102 and a first transfer star wheel 140′. The first transferstar wheel 140′ includes half as many pockets 131 as the forming starwheels 210 and other transfer star wheels 140 that are located between arecirculation discharge 111 and a recirculation entry 112. The firsttransfer star wheel 140′ can have, for example, 4, 5, or 6 pockets 131such that the corresponding forming star wheels 210 and other transferstar wheels 140 have 8, 10, or 12 pockets 131, respectively. Of course,any other suitable number of pockets 131 may be utilized.

Following the primary infeed, the containers 50 pass through varioustransfer star wheels 140 and forming turrets 210 so that the bottlesundergo predetermined forming operations. As the containers 50 approachthe end of the first “pass” of the machine arrangement 102, thecontainers 50 enter into a divider star wheel 142. The divider starwheel 142 separates the containers 50 into either a discharge path or arecirculation path depending on which set of alternating pockets 131 inwhich each container 50 is positioned. If the containers 50, for exampleonly, are in odd numbered pockets 131, then the bottles pass to thedischarge path via a discharge transfer star wheel 141 and then adischarge track 146. The discharge star wheel 141, like the first infeedtransfer star wheel 140′ may have half as many pockets 131 as theforming turret 210. If the containers 50, for example, are in evennumbered pockets 131, then the containers 50 pass to the recirculationpath via a recirculation restacking star wheel 143 and into therecirculation mechanism 103.

In the restacking star wheel 143, the containers 50 are loaded into anarticle guide track 104. As can be seen in FIG. 3, the containers 50 areinitially stacked vertically on the track 103. The arrows illustrate thedirection in which the containers 50 move. The containers 50 pass up andback towards an upstream portion of the machine arrangement 102 andenter a recirculation supply tunnel or chute 111C in the recirculationdischarge 111. An embodiment of the recirculation discharge 111 areshown in FIG. 11.

In the recirculation discharge 111, the containers 50 in therecirculation path are discharged back into the forming path. From thechute 111C, the containers 50 enter a recirculation discharge transferstar wheel 144 that places the containers 50 into another different setof alternating pockets 131 in a reentry star wheel 145. Following this,the containers 50 pass into the forming turrets 210 and transfer starwheels 140 in another different set of pockets that alternate ever otherone, or every third one, or in any other suitable alternating manner. Inother words, the containers 50 are now in the set of pockets 131different from the first pass. When the containers 50 now enter thedivider star wheel 142, the containers 50 in the other set ofalternating pockets 131 (for example, odd numbered pockets 131) will bedivided into the discharge transfer wheel 141 and into the dischargetrack 146. Following the discharge track 146, the containers 50 mayenter a collection container, additional forming machines, or any othersuitable path.

FIG. 4 illustrates the machine arrangement 102 with the frame 310 thatsupports the article guide track 104 and other machines or components ofthe machine arrangement 102. FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of themachine apparatus with the frame 310. FIGS. 9 and 10 illustrate thearticle guide track 104 and the vacuum ports 104V in the track 104 tomove the containers 50 in the recirculation mechanism 103.

The guide track 104 includes a belt 104B that moves the containers 50from a downstream end towards an upstream end of the machine arrangement102. In one embodiment, the guide track 104 utilizes two turn wheels108, 109, for example (which are shown in FIG. 7) to move the belt 104B.The track 104 may be positioned such that a closed end of each container50 is attached to the belt 104B in a vertical manner. As the belt 104Bapproaches the turn wheels 108, 109, the belt 104B bends around a firstturn wheel 108 so that the containers 50 are now in a horizontal line.The containers 50 are moved to an upstream end and are dropped into therecirculation chute 111C to be reentered into the machine arrangement102 via a reentry transfer wheel 145. The belt 104B is looped aroundsuch that it forms a continuous belt. The belt 104B returns to therestacking transfer wheel 143 via the second turn wheel 109.

As shown in FIGS. 9-10, the guide track 104 comprises a belt 104B that,through a vacuum, moves the containers 50 along the guide track 104 andto the recirculation discharge 111. The containers 50 are transferredfrom the restacking star wheel 143 to the belt 104B via a vacuum. Thebelt 104B contains openings 104V over which the closed end of thecontainer 50 rests. A vacuum, via openings 104V, holds the container 50onto the belt 104B.

In an embodiment, the belt 104B runs along a recirculation path up andover a first turn wheel. The first turn wheel 108 rotates in a firstdirection to move the belt 104B in a recirculation direction (towardsrecirculation discharge 111). The second turn wheel 109 rotates in anopposite direction to bring the belt 104B back to the recirculationinfeed 112.

Alternatively, the guide track 104 could comprise an air tunnel thatmoves the containers 50 via air blowing the containers 50 up and alongthe recirculation path.

In an embodiment, the overhead recirculation mechanism 103 is movable toadjust for bottle height (length). According to an embodiment, thearticle guide track/conveyor 104 is capable of a quick change forvarying container 50 height. The track 104 moves with respect to theframe 310.

The guide track 104 is adjustable to account for varying sizes ofcontainers 50. For example, FIGS. 14-15 illustrate a track adjustmentmechanism 160 according to an embodiment of the invention. The trackadjustment mechanism 160 includes a line (main) shaft 161 operablyconnected to one or more pinions 162. Each of one or more cantileveredbeam supports 164 in the recirculation mechanism includes a pinion 162and a rack 163. When the main shaft 161 is rotated, the shaft 161rotates the pinion(s) 162 over the rack 163.

For example, when the shaft 161 rotates the pinion 162 in a clockwisedirection CR (in FIG. 15), the pinion 162 pulls the rack 163 in adirection D to pull a first side 167 of the article guide track/conveyor104 towards a second side 168 to shorten the width of the conveyor 104.In other words, the distance between the first and second sides 167, 168is shortened. The side 167 of the article guide track 104 pulled in isthe side 167 in the far right of FIG. 14 (on the front of the machinearrangement). By shortening or lengthening the width of the articleguide track conveyor 104, the conveyor 104 is capable of moving shorteror longer containers 50.

Alternatively, the shaft 161 may be rotated in a counter-clockwisedirection to allow longer containers 50 in the article guide trackconveyor 104. Guide rollers may be utilized to move the article guidetrack 104. A hand crank may be manually moved to rotate the main shaft161. Alternatively, a crank wheel or any other suitable mechanism may beused to rotate the main shaft 161.

FIGS. 4, 6, 16, 17 illustrate a track adjustment mechanism 170 accordingto another embodiment of the invention. The track adjustment mechanism170 comprises a series of chains 171 and sprockets 172 operablyconnected to a crank wheel 173. By turning the crank wheel 173, a firstsprocket 172′ turns (shown in FIG. 4), which in turn moves the chains171 and remaining sprockets 172. As the remaining sprockets 172 turn, acorresponding shaft 174 rotates to move a slide block arrangement 175.The slide block arrangement moves and extends the height (length) of thearticle guide track/conveyor 104. The crank wheel 173 may rotate in anydirection to make the article guide track longer 104 or shorterdepending upon the size of the containers 50.

The recirculation discharge 111, according to an embodiment, includes acontainer stop 205 shown in FIG. 4. The container stop 205 holds thecontainers 50 in the recirculation supply tunnel (chute) 111C until therecirculation supply tunnel (holding pen) 111C is full. Once therecirculation supply tunnel 111C is full, the containers 50 aredischarged and fed back into the machine arrangement 102 by passing thecontainers 50 from a recirculation discharge transfer star wheel 144 toa reentry transfer star wheel 145. The container stop 205 may comprise asensor that determines the number of containers 50 in the recirculationsupply tunnel 111C that is operably linked to an arm or other mechanismthat prevents the containers 50 from entering the recirculationdischarge star wheel 144. When the sensor determines that the tunnel111C is adequately full, the sensor sends a signal to release the arm orother mechanism to allow the containers 50 to enter the recirculationdischarge star wheel 144. Of course, any other suitable container stop205 may be utilized.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the machine arrangementwith recirculation may include one, two, or more waxing stations. Aplurality of waxing stations each having at least one lubricationmechanism 150 (shown in FIG. 12) are useful due to reduced diameter onreturning bottles. In an embodiment, a first waxing station with alubrication mechanism 150 may be located at the first transfer starwheel 140′ and a second waxing station with a lubrication mechanism 150may be located at the recirculation discharge star wheel 144. Withoutthe second waxing or lubrication station, the smaller diameter on thereturning bottles (second loop) may be difficult to lubricate.

For example, a waxing station may be positioned on the reentry transferstar wheel 145, primary transfer star wheel 140′, an upstream portionstar wheel 140, a downstream portion star wheel 140, or any othersuitable star wheel.

The lubrication mechanism 150 (such as shown in FIG. 13) may lubricatecontainers 50 in the first set of pockets, second set of pockets or bothsets of pockets. Further, the machine arrangement 102 may include twolubricating star wheels; a first lubricating star wheel located afterthe primary infeed 130 and upstream of the reentry transfer star wheel145, and a second lubricating star wheel at or downstream of the reentrytransfer star wheel 145. The recirculation discharge star wheel 144 mayalso be a lubricating star wheel.

In one embodiment, the lubrication mechanism 150 comprises a pluralityof pinion gears 151 that rotate along a sun gear 152 on a main shaft ofthe star wheel. As the star wheel turns, the pinion gears rotate,causing a set of rollers 153 to rotate. The rotation of the rollers 153rotates the container 50. The star wheel turns, the rollers 153 turn,and the container 50 turns, thus moving a portion of the outer container50 surface against a wick 154. The wick 154, via capillary action, islubricated with a lubricant, such as mineral oil, wax, or any othersuitable material. A reservoir can be filled with the lubricant and thewick 154 is directly or operably connected to the reservoir. The wick154 may be a sponge or any other suitable material. The rollers 153 maybe urethane coated rubber.

The lubrication mechanism 150 may also include a heater to heat thelubricant. For example, if wax is used, the wax should be melted priorto application to the containers 50. Thus, the heater melts the wax inthe reservoir to a liquid state.

In an embodiment, a top portion of the open end of the container 50 islubricated. The inside of the container 50 does not receive lubricant.Alternatively, additional portions of the container 50 may belubricated.

A lubrication mechanism 150 may be part of two star wheels: the primaryinfeed transfer star wheel 140′ and the recirculation discharge transferstar wheel 144. In an embodiment, two lubrication mechanisms 150 areprovided such that the containers 50 receive lubrication when initiallyentering the machine arrangement 102, and the containers 50 receive asecond application of lubrication prior to entering the machinearrangement 102 for a second time following recirculation. Thelubrication mechanism 150 does not need to be on the primary star wheel140′ and the recirculation discharge star wheel 144, but any othersuitable star wheels 140 or turrets.

In an embodiment, the lubrication mechanism 150 at the recirculationinfeed (recirculation discharge star wheel 144) may be different thanthe lubrication mechanism 150 at the article infeed (primary star wheel140′) in order for the lubrication mechanism 150 of the recirculationinfeed to process a modified surface of a can 50. For example, in oneembodiment, the rollers 153 of the recirculation infeed lubricationmechanism 150 may have a different diameter than rollers 153 of thearticle infeed lubrication mechanism 150. The different size roller 153diameter can correspond to the modified surface of the cans 50.

In another embodiment, the lubrication mechanism 150 may utilize movablebrushes, lubrication drip system, or any other mechanism to lubricatethe cans 50 as appropriate.

According to one embodiment, the recirculation apparatus may include astrobe light to trouble shoot the recirculation and processing of thebottles. The light can be timed with the movement of the bottles.

According to an embodiment, the recirculation apparatus may includevibration isolators 301, such as shown in FIG. 5.

In an embodiment, the recirculation apparatus may include a cover ordoors 302 (shown in FIG. 6) that may be moved over the modules 110during operation of the apparatus and when the apparatus is not in use.

According to embodiments of the invention, a machine can perform twiceas many processes per stage with recirculation, thereby potentiallyreducing the cost and/or size of the machine required to complete amulti-stage process. The recirculation apparatus can cut down the totalnumber of machines, but there could be reduced throughput to some degree(not as fast as a non-recirculated arrangement with a large number ofmachines).

While the invention is not so limited, embodiments of the invention aresuch that forming turrets or machines 210 may be constructed as modules.The use of bottle forming modules allows for the machine arrangement 102to be assembled and/or changed to provide as many bottle forming stagesas is required and to allow for the addition of additional stages suchas flanging, necking, trimming, expansion, threading, curling, and/orbase reforming/reprofiling, which may be added/removed as desired.

Given the disclosure of the present invention, one versed in the artwould appreciate that there may be other embodiments and modificationswithin the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, allmodifications attainable by one versed in the art from the presentdisclosure within the scope and spirit of the present invention are tobe included as further embodiments of the present invention.

1. A machine arrangement which operates on a plurality of articlescomprises: a plurality of machines arranged to cooperate with each otherin a manner to form a machine arrangement, the plurality of machinesincluding an upstream machine and a downstream machine in the machinearrangement, at least one of the machines comprises an apparatusconfigured to modify the articles in at least one modifying operation asthey pass from an article infeed to an article discharge of the machinearrangement; a recirculation mechanism which moves the articles from thedownstream machine after a first pass through the machine arrangementand recirculates the articles back to the upstream machine in arecirculation pass so that the articles which are recirculated throughthe recirculation pass are subjected to a different modifying operationin at least one of the machines that the articles have previously passedthrough in the first pass; a first lubrication mechanism to applylubricant over an exterior portion of each article after each articlepasses through the article infeed, the first lubrication mechanismincluding at least one lubrication roller a first star wheel with aplurality of pockets, the first lubrication mechanism being positionedat the first star wheel and the at least one lubrication roller of thefirst lubrication mechanism being configured to rotate and applylubricant to the article in at least one of the plurality of pockets; asecond lubrication mechanism to apply lubricant over an exterior portionof each article after each article passes through a recirculationinfeed, the second lubrication mechanism including at least onelubrication roller; and a second star wheel with a plurality of pockets,the second lubrication mechanism being positioned at the second starwheel and the at least one lubrication roller of the second lubricationmechanism being configured to rotate and apply lubricant to the articlein at least one of the plurality of pockets, wherein the recirculationmechanism comprises an article guide track which transfers the articlesfrom the downstream machine to the upstream machine, the article guidetrack comprising a track width adjusting arrangement that adjusts thetrack width of the article guide track to accommodate varying articlesizes, and wherein the at least one lubrication roller of the secondlubrication mechanism has a diameter different from a diameter of the atleast one lubrication roller of the first lubrication mechanism, suchthat the second lubrication mechanism is configured to process amodified surface of the article.
 2. The machine arrangement of claim 1,configured to move the articles continuously through the first pass andrecirculation pass while being subjected to the at least one modifyingoperation.
 3. The machine arrangement of claim 1, wherein the trackwidth adjusting arrangement uniformly adjusts the width of the guidetrack.
 4. The machine arrangement of claim 1, wherein the track widthadjusting arrangement comprises a chain and sprocket arrangement whichsimultaneously rotates threaded members to vary the width of the articleguide track.
 5. The machine arrangement of claim 1, wherein the trackwidth adjusting arrangement comprises a rack and pinion arrangement. 6.The machine arrangement of claim 5, wherein the rack and pinionarrangement includes at least one crank wheel operably connected to aline shaft and a plurality of racks and pinions, and wherein upon theturning of the line shaft via the crank wheel, the pinionssimultaneously rotate to move the corresponding racks forwards and/orbackwards to vary the width of the article guide track.
 7. The machinearrangement of claim 6, wherein the pinions are operably connected tothe line shaft and the racks are operably connected to cantileveredbeams of the article guide track.
 8. The machine arrangement of claim 1,wherein the article guide track includes a vacuum grip to carry thearticles through the recirculation path, the vacuum grip beingconfigured to release the articles at a recirculation infeed for therecirculation mechanism.
 9. The machine arrangement of claim 1, whereinthe first lubrication mechanism is operably connected to the first starwheel located at an end of a recirculation supply chute.
 10. A machinearrangement, which operates on a plurality of articles, comprises; aplurality of machines arranged to cooperate with each other in a mannerto form a machine arrangement, the plurality of machines including anupstream machine and a downstream machine in the machine arrangement, atleast one of the machines comprises an apparatus configured to modifythe articles in at least one modifying operation as they pass from anarticle infeed to an article discharge of the machine arrangement; and arecirculation mechanism which moves the articles from the downstreammachine after a first pass through the machine arrangement andrecirculates the articles back to the upstream machine in arecirculation pass so that the articles which are recirculated throughthe recirculation pass are subjected to a different modifying operationin at least one of the machines that the articles have previously passedthrough in the first pass, wherein the recirculation mechanism comprisesan article guide track which transfers the articles from the downstreammachine to the upstream machine, the article guide track comprising atrack width adjusting arrangement that adjusts the track width of thearticle guide track to accommodate varying article sizes, and furthercomprising a lubrication mechanism to apply lubricant over an exteriorportion of each article after each article passes through the articleinfeed or a recirculation infeed, the lubrication mechanism including afirst lubrication mechanism to apply lubricant over an exterior portionof each article after each article passes through the article infeed,and a second lubrication mechanism to apply lubricant over an exteriorportion of each article after each article passes through therecirculation infeed, wherein the second lubrication mechanism comprisesa lubrication feed with a diameter different from a lubrication feeddiameter of the first lubrication mechanism, such that the secondlubrication mechanism is configured to process a modified surface of thearticle.
 11. An article processing arrangement, comprising a pluralityof article processing machines, the plurality of article processingmachines including a plurality of upstream machines and a downstreammachine in the article processing arrangement, the arrangementcomprising: a plurality of operation star wheels for holding articles,each operation star wheel including a number of pockets for receivingand holding the articles during processing operations, the pockets beingdivided into first and second pockets and arranged so that each firstpocket is arranged between two second pockets; a plurality of transferstar wheels associated with the operation star wheels, each transferstar wheel having a plurality of pockets equal in number to a total ofthe first and second pockets formed in the operation star wheel, thepockets in the transfer star wheel being arranged in a manner so thatarticles in the first and second pockets of an adjacent operation starwheel are respectively transferred into first and second pockets of thetransfer star wheel; an infeed supply for supplying articles forcirculation only to the first pockets of the operation star wheel; arecirculation mechanism for recirculating articles which were circulatedin the first pockets of a plurality of operation star wheels, therecirculation mechanism comprising an article guide track configured forcirculating the articles to the second pockets on one of the transferstar wheels or operation star wheels; a discharge for dischargingarticles from the second pockets of one of the transfer star wheels orthe operation star wheels; and wherein the article guide track isconfigured to transfer the articles from the downstream machine to oneof the upstream machines, the article guide track comprising a trackwidth adjusting arrangement that adjusts the track width of the articleguide track to accommodate varying article sizes, wherein one of thepockets of one of the operation star wheels or transfer star wheelsincludes a lubrication roller configured to rotate and apply lubricantto the article in the corresponding pocket, wherein the recirculationmechanism includes a recirculation star wheel with a plurality ofpockets, with at least one of the pockets of the recirculation starwheel including a lubrication roller configured to rotate and applylubricant to the article in the corresponding pocket, and wherein thelubrication roller of the one of the operation star wheels or transferstar wheels has a diameter different than the lubrication roller of therecirculation star wheel.
 12. The article processing arrangement ofclaim 11, that is configured to operate the operation star wheels andtransfer star wheels to be continuously rotatable.
 13. The articleprocessing arrangement of claim 11, further comprising a vacuum grip tocarry the articles through the recirculation mechanism, the vacuum gripbeing configured to release the articles at a recirculation infeed forthe recirculation mechanism.